New Product Shorts

It’s time to spring into action for the 2008 growing season. This fall is the perfect time for routine maintenance, including changing seal kits in injectors. To help out, Dosatron is offering a savings of 25 percent off all parts used in seasonal tune-up or repair through January 31, 2008. The company is also offering a special discounted price when a grower exchanges any injector for a new unit, either through their participating horticultural supply distributor or by contacting Dosatron.

Heat It Up

Modine Manufacturing Co.:

Customers can now order a Hot Dawg-branded, low-profile, bent tube heater with a 100k and 125k BTU per hour output from Modine. The Hot Dawg brand of bent tube heat exchangers are lightweight, reliable and efficient. Designed for use with natural or propane gas, Hot Dawg unit heaters are easily accessible and backed by a 10-year warranty. In addition to the new sizes, the Hot Dawg lineup has also been enhanced with several new features and options. Modine has added a swept wing fan on the new 100k and 125k sizes to reduce noise, and to support commercial applications, blowers can be specified on all models with a BTU/hour input of 60k or higher. An optional stainless steel heat exchanger is also available.

Star Product

Cleary Chemical Corp:

TriStar 30 SG, a soluble granule formulation of the proven neonicotinoid class compound acetamiprid, will now be offered in a convenient, 2-pound container, in addition to the original 8-ounce container. This new 2-pound package size will replace TriStar 70 WSP, which will be discontinued effective immediately. End users of TriStar 70 WSP will find the easy-to-measure TriStar 30 SG more convenient while still retaining all the benefits of TriStar 70 WSP. Like the original TriStar 70 WSP, the 30 SG formulation will dissolve completely in water, providing effective, long-lasting, broad-spectrum insect control without odor or foliar residue. TriStar SG is effective against all of the same pests as TriStar 70 WSP, including scale, aphids, thrips and whiteflies.

Here Comes The Sun

Dynamax, Inc.:

The BF3 Sunshine Sensor measures Global (Total) and Diffuse radiation, and sunshine duration. It is easy to use and needs no routine adjustment or polar alignment. A patented design, the Sunshine Sensor uses an array of photodiodes with a unique, computer-generated shading pattern to measure incident solar radiation. A microprocessor calculates the Global and Diffuse components of the radiation and determines the sunshine state.

Low Volt Alternative

Advancing Alternatives, Inc.:

New 24-volt motors and controllers now provide growers with a viable alternative to gear box and tube motors. Low-voltage motors come in 60 and 96 NM for great curtain rolling power. Controllers output 24 volts or they can be powered from a 24-volt battery source. Transformer relay boxes are also available to allow growers to convert to low-voltage motors while still using their current ventilation controllers. All are designed to be used in greenhouses that have only low voltage power sources available.

Clever New DesignsITML Horticultural Products:

The Ultra Hanging Pot is a classic style with a textured, stone-like finish and boasts a large soil volume for sizable root systems. The Ultra Hanging Pot also contains an inside divider with a center drain water reservoir to prevent overwatering. The pot offers the TagGrip feature in the rim for plant identification details. Featured accessories for the Ultra Hanging Pot include the 3-Strand Plastic “Snap” Hangers (Medium and Long) and the 3-Strand Automation “Snap” Hangers (Medium and Long).

In addition, ITML has developed a way to easily contain pint pots with the new Pint Tray. A low side profile on the Pint Tray provides a full view of printed or In-Mold designs to deliver the grower’s message at retail. Ribs on the underside of the tray provide extra strength during shipping and handling. The Pint Tray is perfect for use in automated flat filling equipment, roller conveyors and automated potting systems. Additionally, this tray fits the new 4-inch by 7-inch Tall True Perennial Quart container.

New developments in heating, cooling, ventilation, and humidity control technology are designed to help you manage your greenhouse environment more efficiently. Check out some of the latest offerings from leading manufacturers.

New developments in heating, cooling, ventilation, and humidity control technology are designed to help you manage your greenhouse environment more efficiently. Check out some of the latest offerings from leading manufacturers.

A collaboration between Philips And The University of Arizona found that using energy-efficient LED lighting in a prototype lunar greenhouse resulted in an increased amount of high-quality edible lettuce while dramatically improving operational efficiency and use of resources.

Water and nutrient management are critical elements for quality plant production in the greenhouse. Maintaining the right amounts of available moisture and fertilizer at all times can be pretty labor intensive, but there are tools available to help you keep these inputs at optimum levels as efficiently as possible. Recently, we visited Evonik Industries’ North Carolina production plant for to see how one of these products — Stockosorb — is made, how it works, and learn the benefits of incorporating these tools in your own operation. Learn more about Evonik Industries’ Stockosorb hydrogel product on the Stockosorb website.

Growers are creating improvements in a range of functions with customized plant handling systems. Several growers have realized efficiencies through customized conveyor solutions, by working with Cherry Creek Systems, based in Colorado Springs, CO, to install its Echo-Veyor cable-driven transport system. Designed to support multiple different tray types and pot sizes, each system is custom-designed for the individual needs of the operation. It can tie into existing posts or be built into a free-standing system. The Echo-Veyor system has helped growers like Dallas Johnson Greenhouses and Rockwell Farms increase efficiency of product handling in a variety of functions, ultimately reducing time, labor, and labor costs, and improving job functions for employees working on spacing plants, pulling and processing orders, and shipping. Dallas Johnson Greenhouses in Council Bluffs, IA, reduced labor, saved time, improved its team’s performance, and saw improved plant quality at retail after installing its Echo-Veyor shipping […]

Sustainability started to become a keyword in the horticulture industry in the late 2000s, when growers began converting their heating systems to greener options to save on energy costs and reduce their impact on the environment. However, there haven’t been many operations that have invested in sustainable solutions on as large of a scale as Metrolina Greenhouses at its Huntersville, NC, headquarters. Six years later, the operation is still fully committed to its biomass heating system and everything it entails. Metrolina first fired up its Vynke biomass system from Belgium in 2010. The four wood boilers cover 95% of the operation’s heating needs at its 201-acre main location in Huntersville, NC, and Metrolina still maintains its traditional heating systems for back up and to provide flexibility of resources. Wood chips are sourced locally, with the majority from local forestry activities like wood harvesting companies and developers. The other […]